Feeder for bearing members



Sept. 9, 1941.

H. A; ORTEGREN ETAL 2,255,625

FEEDER FOR BEARING MEMBERS Original Filed Dec. 8, 1957 s Sheets-Sheet 1 I Ufa? .Y/awe/ 5/97 a, INVE TOR Sept 9, 1941. H. A. iORTEGREN ETAL 2,255,625

FEEDER FOR BEARING MEMBERS Original Filed Dec? 8, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 .Z f2 Or/eg re f, we/ 5//) TORS ATTORNEY.

Sept. 9,' 1941. H. A. CRTEGREN ET AL 2,255,625

FEEDER FOR BEARING MEMBERS I Original Filed Dec. 8, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Zf/ c 14. Or/egfe IN ENT R5 BY I '/7/fl ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 9, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,255,825 mom son ammo. mamnas Herman A. Orteg-ren and Charles C. Howenstine,

Detroit, Micln, assignora to Bower Roller Bear- :31; Company, Detroit, Mich, a corporation of chigan Original application December a, 1937, seriii'iso. 178,784. Divided and this application August 22, 1939, Serial No. 291,300

4 Claims. (01. 221-1 18) Another object is to improve a roller bearing assembling machine so that the distribution of the rolls from their source of supply to the positions whereat the first step of the assembling process is to be performed is effectuated auto-v matically, efiiciently and without danger of jain- So, because of the fullness of disclosure in the previous application and because of the present desire to seek protection covering only the abovementioned feeding mechanism, the present application is limited as nearly as is practical to that subject matter which. will provide for a clear, though substantially exclusive, understanding of said feeding mechanism, it being submitted that any fuller understanding, if desired, can be readily obtained by referring to said previous application.

Therefore, in following the above intention to restrict the present disclosur'etothe claimed subject matter, that is, to the- .portion of the machine which deals with the rollers at substantlally their source and sends them on their way to the sorting phase of the assembling operming or other acts which would interruptjdesired continuous operation of said machine,

Another object is to provide a roller bearing assembling machine with a new and improved device for supplying the rolls for the bearings to the initial station of the process in a simpler manner than heretofore and without need for attention or fear of unintentional interruptions in its operation;

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become readily apparent from a reference to the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is an elevational view of that portion of the machine in which an embodiment of the invention is incorporated;

Figure 2 is a plan view;

Figure 3 is a section taken along the lines 33 in Figure 2; I

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 but shows the movable parts in raised position; and

Figure 5 is a section taken along the line 55 in Figure 8.

Reference to our aforementioned application (patent) will show that the machine in its entirety consists, generally, of a feeding mechanism (which comprises thesubject matter of the present application), a sorting mechanism (which is in communication with said feeding mechanism and operable for receiving the rollers discharged therefrom and arranging same into proper positions for the next operation) and an assembling mechanism (which is in communication with said sorting mechanism and operable for receiving the properly positioned rollers therefrom and arranging same into properly assembled positions within the cages and/or race members therefor).

ation, it will be seen that-said-machine includes a pair of fixed, vertically upstanding supporting posts 8a by which said portion, or superstructure, is supported. The upper end of each of the posts 8a fixedly carries an end of a radially extending arm 30, and the free ends ofthese arms are integrated with the side wall of a hopper 29 into which a supply of loose, pre-formed roller bearing members is chargeable, said hopper being thereby supported rigidly and fixedly at the upper end of the machine proper.

The lower or bottom side of hopper 23 is provided with a series of substantially circular openings or apertures constituting outlets through which the rollers therewithin may be discharged therefrom, and these outlets are annularly spaced concentrically about the central axis of,said hopper which may be represented by the continuation of the axis of a vertical shaft 33 fixedly secured at its upper end to said hopper bottom and at its lower end to the central portion of a spider 34 having a plurality of radial arms 35 equal in number and in inter-spacing to said outlets. And, freely projecting into each of the above mentioned outlet openings is a tubular plunger 3 I, these plungers being fixedly mounted within the outer ends of the radial arms of a spider 32 carried on shaft 33 for vertical sliding movement therealong between the hopper bottom and the aforementioned spider 34, the number and inter-spacing of the arms of the movable spider 32 clearly equalling the number and interspacing of the arms of the stationary spider 34.

Each of the stationary spider arms 35 fixedly carries the lower end of a feed tube 36 (to each of which ends is attached the upper end of a flexible conduit 50 intercommunicating, as can be seen in our previous application, hopper 29 and these feed tubes extend upwardly from said arms through the movable plungers 3| directly thereabove into fixed and substantially flush relation with the outlets in hopper 29.

Spider 32, which carries plungers 3| for movement therewith, is moved vertically along shaft 33 by means of a fork 31 pivotally supported at 38 upon a bracket extending downwardly from the hopper bottom. A frame member 39a is rigidly supported upon posts 8a intermediate their ends, and upon this member is mounted a motor support 39 carrying an electric motor l from the shaft ofwhich motion is transmitted in any suitable manner to a cross shaft 4| about which is secured a cam lla for operating a crank arm 42 the upper end of which ispivotally connected to an extension arm 43 of fork 31. The spiderplunger unit 32-3| is, therefore, raised and lowered relatively to shaft 33 by the operation of motor 40, and the plungers of said unit will be moved upwardly and downwardly within the hopper outlets relatively to the feed tubes 36. Since plungers 3| and feed tubes 36 are tubular and telescopically arranged with respect to each other, the loose rolls within hopper 29 will feed into the upper open ends of the former and pass downwardly through the latter into the conduits 5|) attached thereto.

Though the loose rolls within hopper 29 are continually agitated by the movements of plungers 3| so as to aid said rolls in finding their way into said plungers, it is proposed to augment such agitation by employing a plurality of agitator blades 44. These blades are carried on the upper sides of the movable spider arms for movement therewith, extending radially inwardly from plungers 3| and vertically upwardly from said arms, and their upper end surfaces are sloped downwardly in a radially outward direction so that the outer, lower ends of said surfaces reside substantially at and level with the outlet openings in hopper 29. It is intended that these blades 44 project into and out of the hopper responsive to actuation of spider-plunger unit 323| and, for

this reason, a plurality of radially elongated, ar-

cuately spaced apertures is formed in the bottom wall of said hopper for receiving said blades, each of said apertures openings at its outer end into the circular outlet respective thereto and extending radially therefrom toward the hopper axis for at least a distance equal to the radial length of the respective blade. Therefore, as the several plungers 3| are moved upwardly and projected through the hopper outlets, blades 44 will also be moved upwardly through the hopper openings provided therefor and contactthe rolls, thus agitating same to cause them to find their way into said plungers.

Although the invention has been described with some detail, it is to be understood that such description is for the purpose of illustration only and is not to be taken as being definitive of the limits of the inventive idea. The right is reserved to make such changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts as will fall within the purview of the attached claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a device for handling bearing. members, a hopper for containing bearing members and having a bottom wall, said wall being formed with a plurality of substantially circular apertures annularly spaced about the center thereof and providing outlets through which the members may be discharged from said hopper, said wall also being formed with a plurality of elongated, arcuately spaced apertures opening into said circular apertures and extending radially therefrom toward said center, a shaft secured to said wall substantially at said center and extending therebelow, a pair of spiders carried on said shaft one fixedly and the other for movement therealong and each being integrally formed with a plurality of radially extendingarms arcuately spaced similarly as said elongated apertures and in vertical alignment therewith and with said circular apertures, each pair of aligned arms carrying a discharge tube extending into the circular aperture aligned therewith and being fixedwith respect to said hopper and said fixed spider, each arm on said movable spider carrying for movement therewith a discharge tube telescopically arranged about the respective first mentioned tube carried thereby elongated agitator blades each carried by one of said arms ofv said'movable spider for movement therewith and extensible into said hopper through the respective elongated aperture.

2. In a device for handling bearing members, a hopper for containing bearing members and having abottom wall, said wall being formed with a plurality of substantially circular apertures annularly spaced about the center thereof and providing outlets through which the members may be discharged from said hopper, said wall also being formed with a plurality of elongated, arcuately spaced apertures opening into said circular apertures and extending radially therefrom toward said center, a shaft secured to said wall substantially at said center and extending therebelow, a pair of spiders carried on said shaft one fixedly and the other for movement therealong and each being integrally formed with a plurality of radially extending arms arcuately spaced similarly as said elongated apertures and in verticalalignment therewith and with said circular apertures, each pair of aligned arms carrying a discharge tube extending into the circular aperture aligned therewith and being fixed with respect to said hopper and said fixed spider, each arm on said movable spider carrying for movement therewitha discharge tube telescopically'arranged about. the respective first mentioned tube carried thereby and extending into the respective circular aperture, and a plurality of upstanding, radially elongated agitator blades each carried by one of saidarms of said movable spider for movement therewith and extensible into said hopper through the respective elongated aperture, the upper end of each of said blades having a surface sloping downwardly in a radial directiontoward the respective circular aperture.

3. In a device for handling bearing members, I

a hopper for containing bearing members and having a bottom wall, said wall being formed with a plurality of substantially circular apertures annularly spaced about the center thereof and providing outlets through which the members may be discharged from said hopper, said wall also being formed with a plurality of elongated, arcuately spaced apertures opening into said circular apertures and extending radially therefrom toward said center, a shaft secured to said wall substantially at said centerand extending circular apertures, each-harm on said fixed spider fixedly carrying a discharge tube extending through the arm on said movable spider in alignment therewith into the circular aperture aligned therewith, each arm on said movable spider carrying for movement therewith a discharge tube telescopically arranged about the respective first mentioned tube and extending into the respective circular aperture, and a plurality of upstanding, radially elongated agitator blades each carried by one 01' said arms of saidmovable spider for movement therewith and extensible into said hopper through the respective elongated aperture.

4. In a device for handling bearing members, a hopper for containing bearing members and having a bottom wall, said will being formed with a plurality of substantially circular apertures annularly spaced about the center thereof and providing outlets through which the members may be discharged from said hopper, said wall also being formed with a plurality of elongated, arousubstantially at said center and extending therebelow, a pair of spiders carried on said shaft one fixedly and the dther for movement therealong and each being integrally formed with a plurality or radially extending arms arcuately spaced similarly as said elongated apertures and in vertical alignment therewith and with said circular apertures, each arm on said fixed spider fixedly carrying a discharge tube extending through the arm on saidmovable spider in alignment therewith into the circular aperture aligned therewith, each arm on said movable spider carrying for movement therewith a discharge tube telescopically arranged about the respective firstmentioned tube and extending into the respective circular aperture, and a plurality of upstanding, radially elongated agitator blades each carried by one of said arms oi' said movable spider for movement therewith and extensible into said hopper through therespective elongated aperture, the upper end of each 01' said blades having a surface sloping downwardly in a radial direction toward the respective circular aperture.

' HERMAN A. ORTEGREHL,

CHARLES C. HOWENS'I'INE. 

